What do Wayne Gretzky, ice fishing, and algae growth all have in common? The answer is that they are all linked in one way or another to the ongoing fallout from rapid climate change.
A recent study from a trio of McGill and Concordia University researchers has provided evidence for a trend that we have all been observing for a long time. The number of days that outside rinks have been frozen and skate-able has noticeably decreased over the past forty years, becoming almost zero in some parts of southern Ontario. The study concluded that with the current trends in planetary warming, in the next decade or so, it will become impossible to create an outdoor rink in a large part of Canada without some form of mechanical refrigeration.
This is where Wayne Gretzky comes in since he, and thousands like him, honed their hockey skills over countless days and nights in backyard rinks from Windsor to Brantford (the home of Gretzky of course) to Toronto. If Gretzky was born today, he would never have had the opportunity to play in his backyard and probably never have become the second best player to play in the NHL (we all know who was the best).
Of course, it is not just the outdoor hockey rink that is threatened. The residents of Parry Sound and other towns that border the Great Lakes have also noticed climate change fallout as the ice from Lake Superior to Lake Ontario just didn’t form this year. Thus, the ice fishing huts that usually dot the Big Sound never made it out of dry dock.
This is evidence of a trend that has been actually occurring for over half a century. A study published in the Journal of Climate, revealed that the Great Lakes have lost more than two-thirds of their ice cover over the last four decades. Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair lost the least (50 per cent), while Lake Ontario has lost the most ice (88 per cent).
While it is entirely possible that the ice will form again next year, the overall trend is obvious and the days of ice fishing in the Big Sound will most certainly be numbered. Of course, you can add other winter pursuits such as snowmobiling, skiing and snowshoeing to the list of causalities of climate change.
Ironically, even those who don’t like winter and long for more days of warmer weather and open water are also in for a rude surprise.
The researchers who have been noting the lack of ice in the Great Lakes have also noted that this comes with a few troubling side effects. Less ice cover and a warmer temperature means less available run off coupled with higher evaporation rates with results in, you guessed it, lower water levels. Again, this comes as absolutely no surprise to most of us as this result has been noted for many years by those living near or boating on our local waterways.
The final kicker comes in the revelation that the longer ice-free period allows for more sunlight to penetrate the water for a longer period of time. At the same time, the overall temperature of the water increases and the results of these combined factors increase the growth of algae. This also expands the area where algae can survive and flourish plus robs the water of oxygen and the ability to support a diverse ecosystem. Once again, this is not likely a revelation to anyone around here.
Even if you don’t care about the health of the environment, you have to be concerned about the economic implications of this. If we have no fish in the water, no trails to ski and snowmobile on and no rinks for shinny, then what exactly are we going to do in the winter and how can we expect to create any kind of off-season tourism?
And where will we find our next Wayne Gretzky?